Replay Reality
by Storm Midnight
Summary: The immposible has happened. Team Rocket has gotten their hands on an Action Replay. With this seemingly unstoppable power, can they finally take over the world? Will our heroes even stand a chance? SoulSilver Universe, AU. Prepare for hilarity.
1. Gateway to Power

Yay new story! So I was playing Pokemon Soul Silver and I was hacking the crap out of it, when this idea hit me. I really hope you enjoy it!

* * *

Things had changed so fast.

One second he was hiding in a remote cave within the Tohjo Falls and the next he was in the new Team Rocket HQ. The strange facility was based underground in a remote part of Jhoto, not too far from Mt. Silver. One of the grunts had been exploring the cave connection between Kanto and Jhoto, hoping to find a rare Pokémon of some sort, but had found him, Giovanni, instead.

The restored Team Rocket Leader looked around his new office slowly. It was dark, just how he liked it, save for the light of his laptop screen. He reached down and scratched behind the ears of his faithful Pokémon companion, Persian. The cat purred contently then curled up by his master's feet.

He glanced at the paperwork on his desk, reading them easily dispite the lack of light. Some of it consited of various updates on what had happened during his absence. A majority were notes from his grunts and Admins, a few stated their resignition while most declaimed joy over his return. He scowled, irritated by both.

There was only one 'scheme' in the works at the moment. You could hardly call it a scheme... It was much more of an experiment. Giovanni slowly picked up the paper detailing it. A strange man named Animus approched him just days after he had returned to Team Rocket; apparently the man had been following a stange legend of sorts. The legend spoke of the greatest weapon in the universe: one that could bend reality, created various items and Pokémon out of thin air, and give those Pokémon, or any Pokémon infinite power. Giovanni looked to the clock on his desktop to the time detailed, the test was already well underway.

Another part of the legend stated that the strange weapon only existed in an alien dimension, and could not be accessed by any natural means. Palkia, ruler of space and dimensions, could probably reach it, but no one wanted to go through all that trouble and pull a Cyrus. Giovanni chuckled to himself when he thought of the strange blue-haired man.

The solution? An unnatural mean. Something that was created by man with the purpose to cross that barrier. Porygon-Z. That Pokémon was already twisted to the point of insanity, so where was the harm in pushing it a little further? The tests performed on this specific Porygon-Z had changed it to the point of actually altering it's coloring, making it akin to that of the extremely rare 'Shiny' Pokémon. Animus had taken this as a sign that it was ready, stating that only 'a specially qualified vessel could retrieve the legendary weapon.'

If this worked, they could finally achieve their dream of world domination! If not... Well things would not end well for Animus... And Giovanni would issue for Team Rocket to disband once more, then return to his cave in the falls.

But if that happened, we wouldn't have much of a story now would we?

"BOSS!"

A grunt threw open the door, causing light to pour into Giovanni's office. The Team Rocket Leader squinted against the change and looked at him in mild annoyance while his Persian hissed with the same emotion.

"What? This better be important!" he demanded.

The grunt braced one of his hands against the doorframe and the other was on his knee. He appeared extremely out of breath, as if he had sprinted here; he then gasped, "It worked! ... The Porygon-Z... It crossed over! And..." he trailed off into a wheeze.

"And what?" Giovanni got up from his desk and grabbed the front of the grunt's uniform, eager to advance the plot. "Tell me!"

"...It brought something back!"

The leader's face blanked for a split second, realizing what this could mean. "Take me to it, NOW!"

"Y-y-yes sir!" he shakily led his boss down several hallways. Both were running, with Persian bounding gracefully behind them. They traveled a great distance into the heart of the base, pausing only twice. In both cases the grunt was required to use a card key to enter a door. They had entered a laboratory of some sort, but at the moment various scientists were huddled behind tables that had been flipped on their sides as barricades, as if they expected the place to blow at any second.

The Porygon-Z was in the middle of the room as a seemingly wormhole-esque portal closed behind it. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief at the portal's dissapearance and began to straighten up.

The grunt at Giovanni's side promptly fainted, collasping into a heap due to a combination of exhaustion and shock.

At the sound of the body hitting the floor, everyone took notice of their leader's entrance and began clapping. "All hail Giovanni!" Someone cried out.

He bowed his head slightly and held up his hand to silence them. "I trust that it was successful?"

A boy approched Giovanni, "We have yet to evaluate the results, sir, but I promise you we are doing so with great haste!" the boy seemed surprisingly young, with aubrn hair and dark green eyes. But the Rocket leader knew better than to underestimate the one before him, for this was Animus. Dispite his appearance, he was well into his thirties and was a selfproclaimed Jack of all Trades. He promised Giovanni results, and there they were.

The Porygon-Z darted over to Animus with sharp, jarring movements. The poor creature shook violently as it hovered next to him. ("Zee do g-g-g...") its head spasmed, ("Good?") its voice became oddly robotic and it froze. ("THE ABSOLUTLE VALUE OF ANY INTERGER IS EQUAL TO THAT OF ITS POSITIVE INTERGER.")

Animus patted the Pokémon's head. "Yes, Zee did very good! Good Zee!" he spoke as if to a small child or a pet. "Can I please see what you found? Pretty please?"

It ignored the question and zoomed very close to Giovanni's face. The Rocket Leader saw a silver rectangular object clutched between its 'hands.' ("Who are y-y-y...you?") Zee asked. ("TO UNLOCK THIS COMPUTER: PRESS CTRL, ALT, DEL THEN ENTER THE APPROPRIATE PASSWORD.")

"This is Mr. Giovanni, remember?" the scientist slowly pulled the creature back by its tail. "Do you want to show him what you found?"

Zee nodded spasticly. ("Yeah! Gio! G-G-G... Gio!") It handed the object to him, then froze again. ("TO REPEAT THIS INFORMATION, PRESS ONE; TO RETURN TO THE MAIN MENU, PRESS TWO; TO END THIS CALL, HANG UP.")

"Is that thing... Stable?" Giovanni asked cautiously.

"Is 'I don't know' an acceptable response?" Animus took the strange rectangular device from the older man. He examined it carefully, before flipping it open. It had two screens, one on the top and bottom half. He looked at the back, "Nin-ten-do DS...?" he read out loud. A strange looking black hub stuck out of the top with a small cartriage sticking out. The scientist pulled it out as well, "Pokémon... SoulSilver Version...!" he stuck it back in, his eyes lighting up, making him look like a boy waking up on Christmas morning. "I think this is it!" He pressed the power button and watched the screen flicker to life. The top screen displayed the title Action Replay DS, then the game's name in a green bubble. On the lower screen was a red button that said start, along with some other small icons.

The Rocket Leader looked questioningly at the device. "And how exactly is this going to help us take over the world?"

The russet-haired man's head snapped up. "Zee! Engage recon mode!"

("Engaging m-m-m... Mode,") The Pokémon shuttered, then it's eyes glowed bright blue. ("WOULD YOU LIKE SOME FRIES WITH THAT, SIR?")

"Can you instruct us how to use the Action Replay?"

("Device must be m-m-m... Modified! Power is transmitted w-w-w... Wirelessly! Codes used to e-e-e... Enhance! Press green star to view c-c-c... Codes!") It fidgeted oddly then screamed, ("THE CAKE IS A LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE!") at the top of its lungs before slumping over. After a few moments, it straightened up, then said, ("Activating Sleep Mo...") it was completely still, its colors dulled, and its eyes stared straight forward towards Giovanni, but seeing nothing.

It was kinda creepy, to say the least.

Animus instructed two of his fellow scientists to take Zee away and lock it in a valute. The tests had rendered it so unstable that a Pokéball was unable to hold the spastic creature.

The dark haired leader smiled wickedly. "Well? What is your verdict?"

The man opposite to him began pacing. "Based on what Zee said... If I can design a collar of some sort to transfer the power of the device to a Pokémon or perhaps even another human if necessary... It would work." He stopped. "Is there a perfered way for us to go about the experimentation from this point, sir?"

Giovanni's mind began to race. World domination was nearly within his grasp, a hundred courses of action raced through his head, but his mind settled on one thing first.

Revenge.

Revenge on that snot-nosed kid that ruined Team Rocket in the past. The one who defeated him... Red.

And he knew just how to do it.

"Animus, does being a Jack of All Trades include disguses?"

"I do the best I can."

He whispered instructions to the man, then finished aloud, "... And make sure to leave the city in ruins when you're done." He then nudged the unconsious grunt by his feet. "If you need a Trainer tester to make sure it's safe before you use it... Use this guy."

The scientist sighed after ordering his group to start working. "I better be getting a pay raise for this."

Giovanni was already walking away. "Sure, sure, I'll make sure it gets settled."

"Good." he replied smugly, before barking, "Let's move! Someone get me a Pikachu over here! We need a wireless bracelet and collar done by midnight!"

The newly restored Rocket Leader smiled once more as he exited. Persian, his ever still and silent companion, looked up to meet his master's eyes. The spark of determained maddess had returned.

It was good to be back.

* * *

I couldn't find any villians in the Pokemon games worthy of bringing the Action Replay into their realm, so I created Animus. He's not much of a vilian actually, more of a mercenary or sorts.

So do you like? If so then Fav, Alert, REVIEW!


	2. Epic Conflict

Here's chapter 2! Here's the heroes!

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xxxx

A few days later...

xxxx

_Both Trainers were down to their last Pokémon. The challenger stared down his opponent, the Pokémon League Champion. A Dragonite and a Jynx would decide the challenger's fate. Either history would be made, or it would be the failure story of the year._

_Lance chuckled, "I always knew it would come down to this, Gold." his eyes hardened as he stared down his opponent. "Your strong bonds with your Pokémon have brought you this far, but can it help you finish the job?"_

_Gold stood proudly as he answered the Dragon Master's challenge. "It's time for a new Champion to rise, we have the power to do anything!"_

_Both Trainers began to call out commands as both Pokémon readied to attack-_

"GOLD!" A sharp blow to the head followed the exclamation, breaking him out of his fantasy.

"Wha-?" The boy toppled off his chair and clutched his head. "JYNX USE ICEBEAM!" he shouted. He heard a voice burst into laughter as he realized what happened. It had all been just another daydream...

"Soul, you didn't have to hit me!"

His female sidekick helped him back up, a concerned look on her face."You were talking to yourself again..." her voice then became angry, "And you weren't listening to a THING Professor Elm was saying, were you?"

"Umm... Define 'listening' and 'thing' and while you're at it-"

This earned him another blow, this time from the professor himself. He sighed. "No Gold, for the last time, Soul will not make you a 'sammich.'"

"Too late," Soul reached into her bag and pulled out a ham sandwich. "I've learned it's best if you give in."

The dim-witted Trainer happily accepted it. "How oddly convenient!" he chimed before unceremoniously shoving the entire thing in his mouth.

"Okay..." Elm sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Now that's done with... I need you two to deliver something to Professor Oak for me. And since you two are the only Trainers around with decent Pokémon, I have no choice but to entrust you with this package."

"So what in it for us?" Soul asked.

The professor pulled out two plastic cards, "Two free passes on the Magnet Train. You should fly to Goldenrod City, then take the Train to Saffron then fly to Pallet Town."

"Wait..." Gold started, "Wouldn't it make more sense to-"

"THE PLOT REQUIRES YOU TO BE IN SAFFRON CITY!" Elm shouted. He tossed a package at the boy. "Just take it and go!"

"It looks heavy..." Soul commented.

Gold put it in his bag. "Nope! It's light and fits perfectly! How oddly convenient!"

She sighed in response then asked, "What are we delivering, anyway?"

"Oh, you know... Files, reports... Generic Old people stuff."

"But why can't you-"

"BECAUSE THE PLOT DEMANDS IT!" He shooed them out of his Lab. "Now go before I'm forced to break the fourth wall any further!"

After the door slammed behind them Soul stated, "Wow, the professor seemed like he was in a bad mood today... I wonder what's going on..."

"Beats me," Gold stretched and cracked his knuckles, "Okay! Let's get this bad boy delivered!"

He called out his Pigeot, Talon, while Soul called out her Noctowl. They mounted their birds and were off!

"You know what I've been wondering?" Gold asked as they flew.

"What?"

"Why can our Pokémon instantly transport us to any city in this region when they are miles apart? Don't they get tired?"

"Don't question the game mechanics," Soul replied as they landed in Goldenrod City. "You'll only end up with a headache."

They recalled their Pokémon and headed to the Magnet Train Station. "The Train is leaving for Saffron in two minutes everyone!" the conductor called out. "ALLLLLLL ABOARD!"

"Hurry up!" Soul grabbed Gold and dashed to the gate. "We're going to miss it!" Dispite her impatience and the rush, they made it to the train right on time.

"Oh cool!" he shouted as they took their seats. "Window seats! How oddly convenient!" He flopped down and began to look around the train. Only a few others had borded with them, which was normal. Most people flew from Jhoto to Kanto and vice versa, but no they had to take the friggin train.

"Hey who's that?" Soul pointed to a boy about their age (perhaps a bit older) who was facing away from them. He seemed to be hiding in the shadows, as if he didn't want to be seen.

Gold recognized him within seconds, "No way... There's no way!" he jumped up and took a few steps towards the boy. "Red?"

"Wait as in the Red? Red of Kanto!" Soul hopped up next to her partner. "That's him!"

The champion of the Kanto League stiffed at the sound of his name and cautiously turned around. His hat was pulled down low, you couldn't see his eyes. "What do you want?" his voice was filled with malice. "I have no time to play with kids!"

The Magnet Train took off, causing our two young heroes to fall over as the train sped to Saffron. They quickly regained their footing as Red laughed scornfully at them.

"What a couple of clutz you are! I've seen Spinda with better coordination!"

The two returned to their original seats. "What a jerk!" Soul muttered while folding her arms. "We are not kids!" she glanced at Gold. "Well you may still be a kid but I certainly am NOT!" She looked one last time at whom she thought to be Red. "Something's not right about him..." Soul quickly unfolded her arms and slammed a fist into her open hand, "We're going to tail him!"

"For Mew's sake WHY?"

She looked dramatically out the window to see the train pulled unto Saffron Station, "Because it's an adventure, damnit! Something has gone wrong with the Champion- the friggin Champion!" She glared at her companion, "And if you're not going to move the plot further, I will."

Gold sighed, "Well, as long as it's oddly convenient for me, I'm satisfied." So they gathered their things and exited the train. "Why are you so eager to move the plot forward anyway?"

"It wanted us in Saffron, and I want to know why."

Do not question the plot. Do not run from the plot. You do not find the plot, it finds you.

Just then, an earsplitting crash of thunder racked the skies as a tremor ran through the ground. Gold let out a cry of fright, "Gah! Wh-what's going on?"

"I don't know, but it can't be good," Soul replied.

Our heroes exited the station to see, well nothing. The sky had filled with black, ominous storm clouds as the thunder crashed once more. Lighting then flashed in large, dangerous bolts of blue. Each flash illuminated their surroundings, terrified faces met their eyes as screams met their ears. A voice, high and cold, laced with the same malice they heard earlier sliced throught the air.

"Pikachu, let's bring this city to its knees!"

Another flash revealed Red. He held a strange object in his hands and his trademark Pikachu was next to him. It bore an equally strange silver collar and its eyes glowed a demonic red; lightning bolts rocketed off of it, causing the surrounding buildings to catch fire. A strange sense of omnipotence radiated from the trainer and his Pokémon. It was unlike anything our heroes had ever experianced before.

Gold faceplamed and stated in a matter-of-fact tone, "We're doomed." Regardless, he pulled out a Pokéball and sighed, "But we have to fight them because we're the main characters, right?"

Soul, a mirror at her partner's side, nodded then whispered, "Poor Pikachu... What on earth did Red do to you?" She readied herself for the fight, "I choose you, Ninetails!"

"Go King!" King was Gold's Nidoking. He wasn't the most creative when it came to nicknames. Anyway, the two Pokémon stood courageously by their respective Trainer's side while they formed a plan.

Red laughed at them like he did earlier, "You honestly thing you stand a chance! That's too funny!" He folded his arms, "I'm only gonna tell you once, give up; it'll save you and your Pokémon a world of pain."

"What do you mean by that?" Soul demanded. An uneasy feeling began to settle in the pit of her stomach as her gaze flicked to the Pikachu once more.

"I have found a way to achieve ultimate power," He waved the stange device that we saw in the previous chapter in the air. "This allows me to give my Pikachu infinite strength!" He pointed at Ninetails, "Pikachu, use Headbutt!"

'Headbutt? Why not use an Electric-Type attack?' Soul thought as she ordered her Pokémon to dodge. But her opponent was extremely fast, as if it had suddenly used Agility. Pikachu rammed into Ninetails with the force of a full-speed train and the impact send the fox flying. It landed in a crumpled heap, unconcious. It's Trainer cried out in shock, then shakily said, "N-Ninetails, return!"

Her partner only stared in awe at the destructive force that was just displayed. Soul's Ninetails was the strongest Pokémon on her team; he knew from experiance it could be a real pain in the ass when you're up against it, and to see it KO'd just like that... He briefly considered running, but he doubted that would help. Now that Red knew that they had the guts to stand up to him, Gold realized that the Champion wouldn't let them go until he had completely crushed their teams... Or worse.

"What have you done to yourself, Red?" The Jhoto native demanded as he clenched his fists in anger. "You're... You're supposed to be the hero, remember? Why are you destroying Saffron? Of all places, this should be one of the most important to you! This is where you defeated Team Rocket, right? This is where... You defeated Giovanni and became a hero- no a legend! Everyone looked up to you!" His voice then dropped to a whisper, "... I looked up to you..." He shook his head, "I may not be able to defeat you, but I will expose you as the sham you are!"

"You really think one of those lame guilt trip speeches will work on me?" Red scratched the back of his head. "Yeah... Not happening!" He input a few commands into the DS "Finish him, Pikachu." the Mouse Pokémon rocketed forward to fufill its master's wish.

"King, use Protect!" A green barrier appeared around the large creature. Pikachu collided headlong into the forcefield, then staggered backwards, dazed. "Now use Toxic!" The Nidoking charged forward, bringing his head down to ram the Electric-Type with it's horn. It flinched as the poison seeped into its system, but quickly retaliated with another Headbutt. The attack knocked out Gold's Pokémon just as easily as it did Soul's before it.

"Is that all you got?" Red taunted them. "Shame... I thought Jhoto would have produced some Trainers that were actually a challenge!"

Gold whispered aside to his friend, "We just need to drag this out for as long as possible, okay?"

Soul was surprised at the sudden change in him, normally Gold wasn't the sharpest crayon in the box. In layman's terms he was, well... An idiot. But he had a plan... And it was working? Things just kept getting stranger and stranger... But still she pulled out another Pokéball, "Let's go Bayleef!"

"Missy, you're up!" Missy was a Misdreavus. See what I mean about the uncreative nicknames? That's why Soul decided against naming her Pokémon.

Red sighed, "You two are too stubborn for your own good. Pikachu, take them down with Thunderbolt!"

"Bayleef, take the hit for Missy!" The Grass-Type looked at her Trainer like she was crazy. "Just do it!" Reluctantly, the Leaf Pokémon threw herself into Pikachu's line of fire, taking the fall for them both.

Gold stared at the Electric Mouse expectantly. 'Why isn't the Toxic hurting it? It clearly reacted when King poisoned it!' His gaze fell to Red's DS, panicking, 'Unless... That thing can clear status conditions? This can't be happening! This is so NOT oddly convenient!'

Soul caught onto her friend's distress, "I'm going to guess your plan just fell apart," He nodded weakly. "Figures..." she sighed. "Well does Missy know Destiny Bond?" He shook his head no. "Attract?" No. "Any move that could possibly help us?" He fell to his knees in despair. "I'll take that as a no."

"Aww... Did the wittle heroes all run out of ideas?" Their opponent mocked them once more. His face then became serious as he folded his arms and observed them, "But I have to admit, that was a good plan, even if it fell flat on its face," He tilted his head, "And we could use some more Trainers at the HQ... I wonder if Gio-" He suddenly stopped, then picked back up, "No, if they get positions that means I'll get payed less, and he still hasn't given me that raise, or payed me for telling him about the legend yet!"

"WHAT are you talking about?" Soul demanded.

Red shook his head, "It's not important, I'm here to battle, not to recruit. He won't pay me for that," His voice adopted a bored tone, "Pikachu use Thunderbolt." And with that Missy fainted.

Soul looked desperately to Gold, still kneeling in defeat. Should they surrender? Between the two of them, they still had eight Pokémon left, but they had zero chance against Red's monstrous Pikachu. Was this it? What happened to good triumphing over evil?It seemed like they had run out of options. They were backed into a corner and completely at Red's mercy. Her lips quivered, then began to form the dreaded phrase that would concede their defeat. Well, her defeat at least, and she knew Gold wouldn't dare fight without her. They had no choice, and she refused to send her remaining Pokémon into a battle they couldn't hope to win.

"I... forfe-" An earsplitting roar cut her off. Everyone looked skyward for the source.

Gold pushed himself into a standing position, "There!" he shouted while pointing. Barely discenable from the dark clouds was a large dragon-like figure. It roared once more and began to descend upon the battle. As it drew closer to them it revealed itself to be a Charizard. Five feet above the ground a person jumped off its back and landed perfectly in one clichéd moment of awesomeness.

All was silent as the newcomer approached. A Pikachu was perched upon his shoulder. Finally, Gold reached a conclusion.

"HOLY CELEBI! RED HAS A TWIN BROTHER!"

Soul sighed and quickly called out one of her Pokémon; it was a Ditto. She nodded to it and it transformed into a baseball bat. She grabbed it a unceremoniously whacked Gold over the head, "NO YOU IDIOT!" He fell to the ground, clutching his skull. Ditto phased back and she placed it on her shoulder. "... You don't have a brother, right?" The newcomer nodded. "So one of you has to be an imposter, right?" He nodded again, but more vigorously. "So which one of you is it?"

Both Reds pointed at the other, enticing annoyed sighs from our heroes and glares all around.

They were both identical, aside from their Pikachu. The Red our heroes were fighting stated, "Isn't it obviously that he's the imposter! He was probably sent by Team Rocket to confuse you!"

Newcomer Red looked pleadingly at Soul; he gestured to the destruction that plagued Saffron, then pointed to himself and shook his head as if to say the real Red would never do such a thing. He then pointed at the other with emphasis, then made a thumbs down and shook his head once more.

Gold cautiously stood up and stated, "There's only one way to settle this!" Everyone looked at him expectantly. "The two Reds will battle! Only the true Red could win against some lame imposter!"

"Annnnd..." Soul added, "The imposter-when revealed- has to explain their evil plan, effectively setting the stage for the plot's main conflict." The Reds nodded in agreement, the collared Pikachu moved to the sight of the new match while its opponent called back his Charizard and pulled out another Pokéball.

The true battle was about to begin.

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Reviews=Love=Update

I've noticed that the stories don't allow an exclimation point to be next to a question mark... strange...


	3. The Prophecy of Replay

Chapter 3, the battle's epic conclusion!

* * *

With the flash of a Pokéball a Lapras was sent onto the field. "Seriously? A Water-Type?" The other Red stated. "Helloooo? You're up against a Pikachu here!"

The Transport Pokémon looked back to its Trainer, who nodded. It opened it's mouth and began to sing a nightmarish lullaby. A blackish-red aura surrounded it as did its opponent; the aura then formed small musical notes that drifted away from them. The notes suddenly turned gray and fell to the ground, emmiting a dull 'gong' before vanishing.

Thus was the initiation of Perish Song.

"Oh please! That won't do anything!" The other Red pulled out his DS and pushed a few buttons, "That should fix... What?" He pushed the buttons again. "Why isn't it...? Clear the status condition!" He yelled at the DS.

"But that's just it," Soul explained. "The effects of Perish Song aren't a listed status condition like that of a poison or burn." She pointed to the DS, "So your little gizmo there can't fix it!"

"IN YOUR FACE!" Gold laughed.

The silent Red cracked a smile at the younger Trainer's exclamation. He then withdrew his Lapras from the battle and sent out his own Pikachu. Now all he had to do was stall until the other fainted. It was becoming clearer and clearer who was going to win this battle. The two Electric Mice began to run, with the regular one being chased. Both continuously used Agility, they were moving so fast it was like there were ten of them instead of two. It was only a matter of time...

"You know, if he just switched out his Pokémon, Perish Song's effect would wear off," Gold commented.

"I don't even think he has a Pokémon to swap out," Soul replied. She then sighed, "Bested by an imposter... Shame."

"Well technically we didn't finish our match with him, so it doesn't count as a lost since you never fully surrendered."

"Good, so it's a tie then."

"Speaking of ties, how much longer until the Perish count falls to zero?"

She looked to her Pokégear to check the time, "Oh it should be happening right about... Now!" Right on cue the imposter's collared Pikachu froze, then collapsed as the black/red aura pulsed from it one final time.

"You really think you could win that easily?" The imposter once again input commands into the DS. His Pikachu stood up and shook itself off, before launching itself back into battle. "Think again!"

The real Red looked to his Pokémon, they both reached a conclusion and charged forward. The two Pikachu collided in a flurry of sparks while Red ran up to the other Trainer. Without even thinking he drew his arm back and punched the imposter square in the jaw.

All was silent. Gold then cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "It's SUPER EFFECTIVE!"

This earned him another round with Soul's Ditto-bat.

The imposter staggered backwards, dropping the DS in the process. It fell to the ground with a clatter, and a strange thing happened when it did. The collared Pikachu became stone still, and its outline appeared to have pixilated. "N-NOOO!" He shouted, "The game froze!" He scrambled towards it and scooped it up. Regretfully, he was forced to turn it off, causing his Pikachu to faint once more.

Red's Pikachu ran forward and hopped back onto his Trainer's shoulder. He nodded towards it, then returned it to a Pokéball. Our heroes ran over to them, now it was time to interrogate the imposter. "Alright, who are you?" Gold demanded. "Who sent you and why were you sent here?"

The imposter stood up and brushed himself off. He then took off his hat- a wig was attached to it. He was a boy with aburn hair and dark green eyes. He bowed and stated, "My name is Animus, Jack of All Trades. I can do anything and everything... For the right price, that is." He straighten then continued, "My current employer is none of your business and why I was sent here is too complicated for your childish minds to grasp."

"Childish?" Soul growled. She reached for her Ditto who transformed into a mirror. She practically shoved it in his face, "Look who's talking, kid!"

"I'M THIRTY-SEVEN YOU STUPID GIRL!" Animus exploded in response while shoving the mirror away. He quickly collected himself, "I'm sorry, that was very unprofessional of me, and I please ask that you do not underestimate my age again."

"Professional? Don't make me laugh!" she scoffed as Ditto phased back to normal.

"I was required to pose as a child, so I needed to act like one." He returned his Pikachu to its Pokéball, "But my mission is complete, seeing as though everyone thinks the great Red of Kanto attempted to destroy Saffron City in a fit of rage."

"Arcanine, use Sunny Day!" A voice called out. The dark clouds began to dissapate over the city.

Animus gasped in mock surprise, "It's the police!" By now he had the DS and Action Replay working once more. "Oh my, look at the time, I really must go!" He pressed a button and ran towards the nearest building, vanishing through the wall.

"Well that's oddly convenient... For him," Gold stated. The sky was clear now, and everyone could see the mess of officers surrounding them, "We, on the other hand, are screwed."

Soul reached for her Ditto, who instictively knew what to transform into. Next think she knew she was holding a megaphone. "PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK! THERE SEEMS TO BE A BIT OF A MISUNDERSTANDING HERE!" She shouted into the device, "THE RED THAT ATTEMPTED TO DESTROY SAFFRON WAS AN IMPOSTER! MY PARTNER AND I WITNESSED THE REAL RED COME AND TRY TO APPREHEND HIM, BUT HE ESCAPED!"

Officer Jenny came forth with a large Arcanine at her side, "And what witnessed proof do you two claim to have?"

Gold decided to answer, "The man who attacked Saffron spoke to us, while the real Red is... apparently mute." A nod from the said Champion confirmed it.

"Well then who's to blame for this?" The policewoman demanded.

"He called himself Animus," He answered.

As Gold described the true culprit to Officer Jenny, Red caught Soul's attention by pointing in the direction of the Magnet Train Station, then to her and her friend and to where they were standing.

"Why are we in Saffron?" He nodded. "We were asked to deliver a package to Professor Oak."

He mouthed the word 'Okay,' then shyly pointed to her again and shrugged.

"Me? Oh, my name's Soul, and that's Gold over there."

He smiled and extended his hand, she shook it then laughed. He looked questioningly at her and folded his arms.

"It's nothing, I... Just feel like I'm meeting a celebrity or something..."

He scratched the back of his head and blushed lightly. He tapped his chin thoughtfully before pointing to her Pokégear. She handed it to him and watched as he opened it to the map function. He showed her the screen.

"Pallet Town? Yeah, that's where we need to go." He pointed to himself, then to the dot representing the town on the map. "You want to come with us?" He nodded and smiled once more.

Gold then walked over to the two, "Well I settled everything with the police without making a fool out of myself! And we cleared Red's name! How oddly convenient!"

"Good job!" his partner cheered. She then explained how Red was going to join them on their journey. They called out their bird Pokémon and readied to continue their adventure. Red hesitated, then gestured to the destruction that Animus caused as if to say they should help.

Soul shook her head, "Let the locals handle it from here, it's time to move the plot forward." He shrugged in response, but called out his Charizard anyway. After he mounted the dragon they were off, with him leading the way to Pallet Town.

xxxx

In said town...

xxxx

"I'll raise you twenty," Bill, world renowned inventer of the Pokémon storage system, started. Some mysterious force compelled him to leave his home on the cape and visit Professor Oak's laboratory. When he arrived, they all seemed to be waiting for something. Then someone suggested they play cards to pass the time, and here they were.

"Fold," Two of the lab's assistants replied.

"I call," Professor Oak placed his money in the center of the table, he was feeling lucky today.

One of his assistants dealt out the remaining card, "Okay, show your hands."

Bill placed down his cards, "Three of a kind."

Oak laughed then said, "Flush!" Quickly he scooped the money off the table and into the pocket of his lab coat.

"Oh come on, that's the fifth round he's won in a row!" The other lab assistant threw down his cards and stormed away from the table.

"Well played, old man, well played." Bill gathered up the cards and put them away, "But I think we've all had enough. You sure play a mean hand of Texas Hold 'em!"

He just laughed in response. One of the assistants ran up to them, "Professor, I think they're here!"

"They? What's going on?" Bill asked.

"The plot," He looked to his watched and sighed. "And they're late!" The Professor then went outside to greet out heroes.

xxxx

"Well, here we are!" Soul exclaimed as their Flying-Types were dismounted and returned. She turned to Red, "How does it feel to be back home?" He smiled and gave her a thumbs up.

Gold, however, wasn't having any of that. "Hey, we need to talk!" Red looked at him, confused. "That's the fourth time you smiled this chapter!"

"So?" His partner challenged.

"I'm the happy-go-lucky idiot in this story! You need to stop being so cheerful all the time and act like the silent, emotionless NPC you are!"

If he could speak, I'm sure that Red would have cursed out Gold to the best of his ability, but instead, he pointed to one of Soul's Pokéballs. Knowing what he wanted she called out her Ditto who transformed into a Giant Hammer (think Smash Bros.). She handed it to him and the Champion unceremoniously began to beat the other boy with it.

"Well it's about time you got here!" They turned to see none other than Professor Oak marching over to them. He stopped and looked curiously to Red and Gold, "Why is that boy being beaten with a hammer?"

"He insulted the other's only mean of communication," Soul sighed, then went over to wrestle Ditto out of Red's grip. He reluctantly returned it to her, but decided he wasn't quite finished and called out his Pikachu to have Gold electrocuted, just for good measure. He finally took notice of Oak and waved cheerfully to the professor.

"It's nice to see you too, Red," He responded. "Umm... Is he going to be okay?"

Red shrugged nonchalantly as Gold shakily stood up, "You win... For now."

"So we, uh, brought a package from Professor Elm for you." Soul stated as she pulled said package from Gold's bag. Miraculously, it was still in one peace and completely untouched.

"Ah, yes. I was alerted via email that you would be arriving."

Gold looked to his partner they both had the 'are-you-kidding-me?' look, "Seriously?" he asked. "Why didn't Professor Elm just email the files to you then? Wouldn't that be oddly convenient for all of us?"

The other professor rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "I don't know... His email said something about a plot?"

The young boy looked to Soul, "Oh he is so dead when we get back home."

She nodded as Ditto transformed into a chainsaw for emphasis. Red tenatively reached for the weapon, but she slapped his hand away, "NONE FOR YOU!" With any other weapon, she would have been cool, but no one messed with her chainsaw. No one.

Professor Oak sighed at the sight of the odd troupe and quickly ushered them into the lab. He took the package from Soul and placed the files upon a table. They appeared to be photos of the inside of some ruins. Strange letters adorned the walls and they looked and awful lot like-

"Unown!" Bill walked over and identified the symbols. He then greeted our heroes. They returned the greeting (Red simply nodded) as Bill continued, "This wouldn't happen to have any connection to that legend we coincidently found out about not too long before this story began, now would it?"

"It's hard to tell," The professor replied. "To be perfectly honest, I'm not well versed in the language so-"

"HAVE NO FEAR!" Gold suddenly bellowed while pulling something out of his bag, "THE ODDLY CONVENIENT UNOWN REPORT IS HERE!" He flipped open the blue and yellow report and began to translate the letters in the pictures.

"Wait, that thing wasn't even near completion the last time I saw it!" Soul interjected. "When did you-?"

"Remember that night I couldn't sleep?"

"Yeah..."

"Talon and I flew over to the Ruins of Alph and got it all done." He then smiled, feeling very proud of himself.

The others only stared at him in wonder. Red got up and retrieved a notepad and pencil from another table. "So can you translate it, or what?" he wrote.

"'Those who hack wield Replay's wrath,'" Gold began, "'Their enemies will not escaped unscathed. Time and space must be transversed, in order to tame this deadly curse. Endless assitance will come through the void...'" his voice faltered, then continued. "'If overused it will destroy... Anything desired is theirs to call, but greed and codes will end us all.'" He looked up from the papers, "It's not a legend, it's a prophecy."

Red scribbled something on his note pad and showed it to Gold, "Wow. I gotta admit that was pretty impressive, how did you translate it so fast?"

The younger boy laughed sheepishly, "Actually Elm already had it translated on this piece of paper already..."

Cue group facepalm- err, face-table in Red's case. He held up his notepad once more, "You idiot! Why didn't you tell us in the first place?"

"Well, there are still a bunch of others pictures with words that Elm didn't translate!" Gold replied.

Everyone (except Red) groaned aloud as they divided the papers amongst themselves, placed the Unown Report in the center of the table, and went to work.

Strangely enough, no one bothered to tell Oak what happened in Saffron; the delivery of the package and its contents must have pushed the incident to the back of their minds. But don't worry, there's always next chapter. And now to end it with something vague and mysterious!

Little did they know that the battle with Animus and the Unown writings were deeply connected. A war was on the horizon, a war in which heroes will be born, villains will raise an empire, and afterwards the Pokémon world will never be the same.

* * *

YAY CONVIENCE! Haha... You really should review.

Chapter 4 will be up in a day or two... I needed to add stuff. Lots of funny shit is gonna happen.


	4. Breaking News

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere's the Replay! Sorry for being a late!

* * *

About halfway through the translation, Professor Oak looked up to Gold and Soul, "So Elm told me in his email you two would take the Magnet Train from Jhoto to Kanto... How was Saffron? I'm guessing that's where you met up with Red, right?"

The Kanto champion held up his notepad, "Wow, I almost forgot what happened despite the fact I almost got arrested for destroying half the city..."

"What do you mean you almost forgot?" the other two Trainers shouted in unison.

"Hey, you two forgot too. So don't blame me!" Red ended the note with a frowny face.

The professor was confused, but just as he was about to ask them to explain what they meant one of his assistants rushed into the room lugging a small television set. Multiple extension cords trailed behind it, allowing it to reach the table our heroes were working on with ease. "Professor! Y-you have to see this!" the assistant shouted as he turned to a news broadcast, a Breaking News icon flashed upon the screen. "Oh good this one just started..." Everyone looked to the screen, fearing the worst.

"Good afternoon and welcome to Kanto News." A rather stern looking man appeared, holding the news bulletin, "I'm a generic anchorman whose identity holds no relevance to the plot, here with your breaking news story." An image of Saffron City burning appeared, "Today a city lies in chaos and ruin after a brutal attack by a strange boy posing as our beloved regional champion," Red's picture then popped up. "Fortunately, the true Red of Pallet Town was able to stop the imposter with the assistance of two unidentified Trainers. Judging by their timely appearance on the scene, it's safe to assume that they were protagonists of some sort. We will now show you a video one bystander took, capturing the imposter's escape."

The quality of the clip was not that good, as it was dark at the time, but it clearly showed Animus running and disappearing through the wall of a building.

"And now, to a random reporter in the field."

The reporter was standing in front of the Magnet Train Station. "Thanks," He began to walk as the camera followed him. "Now you can see behind me that several buildings were damaged in this attack, which were results of monstrous Thunder attacks by the imposter's-" He looked to someone beyond the camera, "What? What did you say?" Officer Jenny ran over to the reporter and whispered something in his ear, then ran off. He beamed at the camera, "Ladies and gentlemen, I have just received an exclusive update! The name of the imposter has been revealed along with the previously unidentified Trainers! Animus is the name of the man who attack our beloved city of Saffron with his cruelly superpowered Pikachu. The source of its power seemed to come from the strange collar it was supposedly wearing at the time. This also could have been the same power that allowed Animus to vanish through a building during his escape. And of course we would now like to thank Gold and Soul of New Bark Town for assisting in exposing the culprit of this terrible crime. Saffron sends its heartfelt thanks! Police forces are doing everything they can to track down this villain and find out what is the source of his power. I pray that Animus is alone in his actions, or else we could be in some serious trouble. Live from Saffron City, I'm-" a burst of static issued from the TV set.

"Stupid old thing!" the assistant pounded its top and it reverted to normal.

"-of Kanto News. Back to you-" Bill reached over and turned it off. He nodded to the lab assistant, who carried the TV away.

"Well, that conveniently explains everything now, doesn't it Professor?"

"YAY CONVENIENCE!" Gold shouted cheerfully.

Red shook his head solemnly as he handed his notepad to Soul, "How in the name of all things good and holy do you put up with him!"

"Years of practice, patience, and countless beatings,"

Professor Oak was deep in thought, "Wasn't that boy... Wasn't he the same one who helped discover those new ruins in Jhoto?" He gestured to the photos of the Unown writings, "I remember talking to Professor Rowan about a boy who fits Animus's description..."

Bill seemed surprised, "Rowan was in Jhoto?"

"Yes, you know how he likes to study myths, ruins, and anything vaguely old or mysterious."

"I see," the younger boy replied. He then 'hmm-ed' quietly, "Yes, now that you mention it..." His expression became alarmed, "Animus... He found it, Didn't he? I can't believe it! It all makes sense now!"

Gold scratched his head, "Umm... What exactly is 'it?'"

"The Replay Prophecy you read earlier," Oak began, "It is about a mystical item known as the Action Replay. If applied correctly, the laws of physics and the very fabric of time and space are yours to command!"

"So where does one find this all powerful Action Replay?" Soul asked while offhandedly looking through the Unown writings on the table. She remembered the prophecy saying something about codes, and what they had translated just seemed to be long strings of numbers and letters with odd titles such as 'Full Heal' or 'One Hit KO.' ... This must have been what Animus meant by achieving ultimate power.

"It's said to exist in a completely different realm," Bill replied. "How did he get it?" He began to pace around the room. "I mean, we'd know if he hijacked Palkia to cross the fourth wall... Right?"

Everyone nodded in response. "That strange thing he had..." Gold began, his voice becoming strangely serious. "The Action Replay can't work without it, and it's rendered powerless when it freezes. And apparently he could also turn it on and off at will."

Red placed his notepad on the table, "Strange... It's almost like a video game of some sort..."

ORLY?

They were about to discuss the topic further, but Professor Oak's assistant came back in with the TV again. He shook his head wordlessly, his mouth opened in horror.

By the gods that boy needs a name!

The screen displayed the generic anchorman they saw earlier, but instead of his usually serious visage a rather frazzled face was in front of them. Two things were utterly clear: something was terribly wrong, and the anchorman... Was wearing a toupee. "T-T-this just in, o-our studio is being attac-!" Just then someone shoved him out of the way, sending his toupee flying off his head and landing on the news desk.

"HEY IT'S TEAM ROCKET, BITCHES!" A Rocket Grunt shouted as he took the anchorman's seat. He noticed the toupee, "Oh, GROSS!" Carefully, he nudged it off the desk before turning to face the camera. "That's right folks live from Kanto News Studio you're witnessing the revival of the number one and only group that has a fighting chance at world domination: Team Rocket!" The grunt suddenly became very angry, "YOU KEEP THOSE DAMN CAMERAS ROLLING!" He pulled out a Pokéball, "Go, Umbreon! Use Shadow Ball!" As he called out the Pokémon, our heroes saw a thick silver bracelet around his wrist, and the Umbreon wore a collar identical to the one on Animus's Pikachu earlier. The grunt flipped open a part of the bracelet and pressed a few buttons; after the situation with the cameras were settled the grunt continued to speak.

"Listen up! This is Random Grunt # 3468: Larry! Why am I important enough to have a name? Because I'm getting a promotion after this broadcast!" He chuckled, pleased with himself. "So! We've regained control of Saffron City and we've taken over The Goldenrod City Radio Tower-"

"Those fiends!" Soul gasped.

"-So all those lovely people in Jhoto now get to hear the Larry News Broadcast in radio form!" Subtitles flashed along the bottom of the screen: Resistance is Futile. "Oh, and in case you were wondering, Animus is working with us and helped destroy Saffron." The ruined city appeared once more, and the subtitles flashed: Yep, that was us. Larry spun around once in the chair while speaking, his voice became utterly serious, "Now allow me to introduce you to a man so terrible, so incredible, that he is only known by one name." A version of Sephiroth's theme began to play.

Gold squealed, "Does this mean we're going to cosplay?"

"NO!" Everyone shouted before turning back to the TV.

"Aww... We never get to cosplay!" He pouted as Larry began to speak once more.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and Pokémon alike! Behold the ruler of your existence! The awesome, awe-inspiring and all powerful Giovaniiiiiiiiiii!" The grunt bowed, conferring a great honor to his leader's appearance. The music began to chant his name, "Gio-vani... Gio-vani!" The subtitles then began flashing in all caps: ALL HAIL GIOVANNI!

His trademark Persian hopped onto the news desk as Larry offered him the seat, which he took gladly. He was eager to return to a seat of power, regardless of where it was. He propped his elbows on top of the desk and folded his hands. He smirked at the camera; the sharpness of his gaze was so powerful that it seemed to pierce through the TV set and into the hearts of our heroes.

Those eyes displayed a terrifying and unwavering madness.

Giovanni let out a small "Ha." to show his satisfaction with the situation. He leaned forward, and as he did the camera zoomed in upon him.

Eerily he whispered, "I'm baaaaaaaaaaaack..."

* * *

Review please! I have no clue what to do next! All ideas are welcome!


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